Political Dig

During a panel discussion on ABC Sunday, Republican strategist Alex Castellanos said he believes “we’re closer to impeachment now than we think” and that Republicans will likely lose control of the House in the 2018 mid-term elections.

Castellanos, who also serves as a CNN contributor, told host George Stephanopoulos that if Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore wins a special election next week, he could become the face of the party and hurt GOP candidates in next elections.

Asked by Stephanopoulos if special counsel Robert Mueller “posed an existential threat” to President Trump given former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s guilty plea on Friday, the veteran strategist said “I don’t see that yet.”

“All we have seen is charges for tax evasion and lying to the FBI. You know, only in Washington is it an industry that people go to jail for covering up crimes they don’t commit as a standard procedure,” he said.

“But combined two converging currents, the Mueller investigation, looking for that obstruction of justice charge, and then Alabama,” he continued.

“Roy Moore coming to the Senate possibly in a week. And he becomes the face of the Republican Party for the next year when we’re already in danger of losing the House. It’s likely we’ll do that without him, lose the House. Trump gets impeached.”

“We’re closer to impeachment now than we think,” Castellanos concluded.

A majority in the House would have to vote for impeachment. In the Senate, a two-thirds vote is required for impeachment.

Democrats need to flip 24 seats to win back the House.

Trump has repeatedly dismissed the investigations into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election, including possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Moscow, calling it “fake news” and “an excuse made up by the Democrats for losing the election,” and a “witch hunt.”